Netflix Pays $1M for 23-Page Short Story 'Understudy' to Launch Series with Steven Yeun and Lord Miller
Netflix acquired the rights to Nicholas Binge’s 23-page short story 'Understudy' for $1 million, marking a significant move to adapt short-form literature into series. The project features Steven Yeun and Phil Lord and Chris Miller as executive producers, with Binge writing the adaptation. The story, which centers on an actor in South Korea becoming entangled in a criminal conspiracy, attracted bids from seven studios. This deal highlights the growing value of short stories as source material in Hollywood, leveraging the recent success of Lord and Miller’s 'Project Hail Mary' and Yeun’s work on 'Beef' and 'Invincible'.